Allergy Free Mickey Waffles

by stef
(mountain view CA)

Love your blog. Question...going to DW July 3 - July 6. Staying off property near Downtown Disney at Holiday Inn.

Where's a good place to get a Mickey Waffle? I'd prefer not to have to get an ADR and do a buffet. Would like to do a quick service. When to drive? Where to park? All the QS that have waffles seem to be at resort properties.

Another factor, my child has allergies (milk, egg, peanut, treenut). I've already contacted special diets...but they only seem to talk about gluten free waffles at most places that make waffles. If you don't have experience on the allergy front, maybe you could just try to answer the first question about where...generally. I think the allergen free batter might be the gluten free batter...so if they have that somewhere, the other allergens should work.

Mostly I don't want to drive to a hotel QS only to learn that there are no Mickey waffles there...or that driving to an on property hotel is a pain. I understand most have 3 hour free parking...is that right? I could monorail to Contemporary, but that might be time consuming. Any strategic advice?

Love those Mickey Waffles

Dad’s The Perfect Mickey Waffle Answer

Stef,

You’re in luck – Disney really goes above and beyond to accommodate their guests, and allergies are no exception. It might make a little bit of consideration when building your PLAN but you’ll definitely be able to find the Perfect Mickey Waffle on your Perfect vacation.

Mickey Waffles are a true Walt Disney World experience. They’re crispy, fluffy, totally delicious and completely iconic (even though Dad prefers the outstanding omelets served at Disney’s Pop Century Resort). No child’s vacation to the most magical place on earth is complete without one, so Disney strives to serve waffles that everyone can enjoy!

Disney’s restaurant staff are able to accommodate common food allergies on a moment’s notice - including gluten, wheat, shellfish, soy, lactose, dairy, peanuts, treenuts, fish, eggs, and corn. They’ll also try to accommodate guests with other allergies or multiple common allergies (your child would fall into this category), but in these cases they suggest you contact Special.Diets@DisneyWorld.com 2 weeks prior to your trip, just as you’ve done.

While Disney doesn’t list the ingredients of their alternative, allergy free waffle batter, multiple guest reports suggest that they use a special mix that accommodates all of the above listed common food allergies, using applesauce or an egg replacement product to bind the batter. All the Quick Service locations that make waffles should have this batter, so now you just need to find somewhere with a Mickey Waffle Iron!

Unfortunately, you’ll have to head out to a resort for this infamous breakfast. Sleepy Hollow in Liberty Square used to serve a Mickey waffle, but stopped recently in favor of new menu items. And any allergy-free waffles you’ll find in the parks (even at buffets or table service locations) will likely be circular, frozen Van’s brand waffles.

But like I said, you’re in luck! All of the value and moderate resorts have Quick Service locations that serve Mickey Waffles, and you can also find them at the Contempo Café at the Contemporary Resort, Captain Cook’s at the Polynesian Resort, and Gasparilla Grill at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. You’ll be able to speak with a cast member at the respective Quick Service location to inform them of your child’s allergies and something special will be prepared.

One option is certainly to park at the TTC when you visit the Magic Kingdom, and then head to one of the "monorail resorts". It might take a little time to get to and from the resorts, but you have the choice of taking the monorail or a boat, and if you choose to dine at the Contemporary Resort, you can actually walk there in just a few minutes.

You can also drive directly to a resort and park there for up to three hours if you have plans to dine on property, but this will be a hassle at the moderate resorts where parking may be a long way from the Quick Service location. A better bet is to head to one of the value resorts where you’ll be able to park near the main building where the Quick Service location is to be found.

Dad's Bottom Line

Stef, Disney does a great job in accommodating guests with allergies. If you stop in at a resort with a Mickey Waffle iron, you should have no problem requesting a special order that meets your child’s dietary requirements.